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I have to admit, there’s something surreal about standing out in the late summer hot afternoon sun, all sweaty and grimy, cutting and sanding a snowboard.

It’s a pure juxtaposition, for sure, yet even though it seems worth commenting on, everyone’s too busy to really care. “Yeah, we get it, building snowboards in the summertime. Real weird. Where’s the 120 grit sandpaper, smart guy?”

Over the weekend of August 19 & 20, a small crew met up at the base of Ragged Mountain in Danbury, NH. These included Tyler Matzke, founder of Hidden Collective, and a repeat class attendee; Personal trainer and former USAF serviceman Rudy Planter; and past PowderJet alum and Loon Mt. local, current Northeastern University student Jessamine Young. Each came to the class with their own ideas of what kind of board would suit their riding styles, and each spent the weekend crafting that personal shred.

Tyler brought the vision of many years of NH riding and stoke to the class. He and his wife Beth also provided delicious meat to the class, in the form of some incredible hamburgers. The 100 lb starving college student ate 3 of them (sans bun, with cheese). Tyler ended up shaping a short, wide swallowtail that will be perfect for those east coast heavy pow days.

Jessamine is a park rider, who really isn’t afraid of taking her lumps. She wanted a board that she can ride every day in the park, and maybe take to the growing number of banked slalom races popping up every year. She whittled down a twin shaped 146 cm park shredder with a nice deep sidecut. Jessamine gets the award for most artistic graphic, with a hand painted spirit animal bear between the bindings.

Our new friend Rudy, from Manchester, NH, brought a very specific plan to the class. He was looking to build a wide, short board for riding every chance possible at Ragged Mountain this winter. We had many email discussions in the weeks leading up to the class, and honed in on the design pretty quickly, although at the morning of the class, he needed to pick a nose and tail shape that complemented his shape. The resulting snowboard is a unique shape, short and wide with a crescent moon nose, and flat kick tail.

It ain’t much that draws us together, just a passion for riding and a willingness to express ourselves in an ever-altering snowscape

At the end of Sunday, everyone was hyped on their creations, and we marched all over the base of Ragged, taking pictures and shooting the shit. My favorite part of these classes is getting to meet all of the cool people from varying walks of life and experience. It ain’t much that draws us together, just a passion for riding and a willingness to express ourselves in an ever-altering snowscape-even if that means spending a summer weekend in a dirt parking lot on a mountain.

Many thanks go to Ben Hall and the crew at Ragged Mt for hosting this event, we know we’ll be back soon! Thanks to Tyler and Beth and their beautiful son Oliver for hosting us all weekend, even going so far as bringing us up to their land up above Franklin, NH for post class camping, beers, and inaugural campfire. We’ll be back for more of that too!!!

Build Your Own Snowboard This Season

Once again, we are taking our Build Your Own classes on the road as part of the Speed of Sawdust tour. Handshape your very own PowderJet as part of a once in a lifetime experience.